Brent D. Slife

Critical Thinking as Disciplinary Practice

Critical thinking in psychology has traditionally focused on method-centered tasks such as the assessment of method use, data analysis, and research evidence. Although helpful in some ways, this form of critical thinking fails to provide resources for critically examining the scientific analytic foundation on which it rests and, when used exclusively, prohibits sufficiently critical analysis of theory and research. An alternative view of critical thinking—that emphasizes the identification and evaluation of implicit theoretical assumptions—is advocated. It is suggested that this alternative approach improves on method-centered approaches by addressing not only implicit assumptions but also rule-following concerns. This approach is intended to facilitate innovation and the production of scholarly work in ways that incorporate relational values such as dialogue, care, and respect. Finally, this alternative form of critical thinking is described as a theoretically situated, open, and evolving conception of critique that should itself be continually reanalyzed and refined, particularly in response to the evolving nature and needs of the field.

Examining the Relationship between Religious Spirituality and Psychological Science

Scientific interest in religious spirituality and mental health has increased dramatically. However, many researchers have tended to ignore the historic incompatibility between spirituality and traditional science. A review of the spirituality research suggests that important themes of this historic incompatibility persist in contemporary theories of spirituality. Yet, many spirituality researchers have proceeded as if this incompatibility does not exist. Indeed, there is evidence that spiritual conceptions have been altered to fit the requirements of science. No alteration would seem necessary if scientific method were a neutral tool of investigation that did not affect the conceptions themselves. However, if method has philosophical commitments, and if these commitments are incompatible with the conceptual foundations of spirituality, then spirituality researchers may be undermining their own conceptions in science. We outline the philosophical commitments of traditional scientific methods and the philosophical commitments of contemporary conceptions of spirituality to begin a conversation about this possibility.

Depression, cognitive skill, and metacognitive skill in problem solving

Abstract Two experiments investigated the relationship between four factors: depression; two types of metacognitive skill; and cognitive skill. Experiment 1 manipulated depression in 40 college students with a Velten procedure to examine its effects on three skills: the ability to accurately answer certain types of math problems (cognitive skill); the ability to accurately predict ones ability to answer the problems (metacognitive knowledge about cognition); and the ability to accurately rate ones performance after attempting to answer the problems (metacognitive monitoring of cognitive performance). Experiment 2 measured these skills in 48 college students with severe, mild, and no depression. As predicted, the results of both studies indicated that depressed subjects were less skilful than nondepressed subjects on both types of metacognitive abilities. Metacognitive skills were not correlated with cognitive skill, supporting the unique nature of metacognitive skills. In addition, level of depression a...

Avoiding an EST Monopoly: Toward a Pluralism of Philosophies and Methods

We contend in this article that the EST movement is becoming an ideological and economic monopoly through the exclusive use of one philosophy of science—empiricism. This epistemology monopolizes the methods that produce the EST’s. We provide lists of the values and assumptions that other scholars have demonstrated is endemic to empirical research, and we provide here an in-depth discussion about one central, uninvestigated value of such research. We, then, show the impact of this value—bias and favoritism—not only on the research itself but also on what is deemed an EST. This is followed by a discussion of a non-monopolistic alternative, an alternative that disallows the relativism and “anything goes” of psychotherapy’s history but avoids the dogmatism of an exclusive ideology.

Thinking through Positive Psychology

Positive psychology offers a needed corrective to deficiencies in mainstream psychology. However, there have been relatively few attempts to systematically analyze and assess this movement. This special issue examines the conceptual underpinnings and guiding ideals of positive psychology. Generally, these articles conclude that positive psychologists have not dealt adequately with the challenge of rendering credible and illuminating accounts of human flourishing in a post-positivist era and in a pluralistic society. The authors suggest ways we might better meet this challenge, allowing us to discuss questions of human agency, character, and the good life despite quite different views of them across historical eras and cultures. We hope this will help fulfill some of the aims of positive psychology.

Are Psychology'S Main Methods Biased against the Worldview of Many Religious People?

This article examines some of the more problematic aspects of recent efforts to integrate psychology and religion. Specifically, many religious people—psychologys main consumer and client—make different assumptions than many psychologists about human nature and the world. This article attempts to explicate many of these conflicting assumptions, particularly as they affect psychological methods. Therapeutic and experimental methods are frequently viewed as theologically, if not philosophically, neutral to the subject matter they are investigating. This article aims to dispel this common myth. To discover or highlight these “hidden” assumptions of traditional methods, they are first contrasted to the assumptions of interpretive practices. However, interpretive practices are themselves often viewed as theologically neutral. Consequently, psychological methods are also compared to a theistic mode of inquiry that assumes that an active God is necessary to proper investigation.

Differential recall as a function of mood disorder in clinically depressed patients: Between- and within-subject differences.

Etude de la memoire immediate dans la depression majeure des personnes âgees: meilleure memorisation des stimulis juges deplaisants, dans les periodes les plus depressives et par rapport aux sujets-controle non depressifs

Developing Problem-Solving Skills

Practical suggestions for possible remediation strategies for problem-solving skills

Teaching Critical Thinking by Examining Assumptions.

We describe how instructors can integrate the critical thinking skill of examining theoretical assumptions (e.g., determinism and materialism) and implications into psychology courses. In this instructional approach, students formulate questions that help them identify assumptions and implications, use those questions to identify and examine the assumptions and implications of theories being studied, and develop defensible positions on the tenability of various theoretical assumptions. We suggest that this instructional approach fits within extant critical thinking proposals, such as those formulated by King (1995) and Halonen (1995).

Taking Relationship Seriously in Psychotherapy: Radical Relationality

Psychologists who have historically focused on relationships have tended to underestimate the radical nature of human relationship. A “serious” or an ontological relationality would change the nature of psychotherapy. We describe this change in a discussion of two approaches to relationship, weak and strong relationality. We argue that weak relationality, the general conception of relationship in mainstream psychology, does not ultimately take even the therapeutic relationship seriously. We then discuss and illustrate ten practical implications that a strong relationality would have for psychotherapy.